Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread

[TorinoFermic]

Ehhhh, I bought Keithley 236. That'll be fun device to play around. Especially upgrading it into 237 for 1000V output. I love dangerous voltages. 

[tggzzz]

Repetitive they can be made but this increases complexity considerably

I'm going to look at it from the top down again. I might have overcomplicated this

I know my code is getting better when it is getting smaller

Or, as I have been known to put it... Don’t ask “Can you give me a lift into town?” Do ask “Can you give me a lift into town, so I can replace my broken frobnitz?”. The answer might be “There’s a spare frobnitz in the attic”, thus saving time, money, the environment – as well as making some space in the attic.

[BU508A]

Solartron 7075 (NAWTS)

https://www.ebay.com/itm/133475861755

[TERRA Operative]

I just can't help myself. 
Just won a HP 6035A PSU for roughly $100. 0-425V at 0-5A, 800W...  (Auction photo again).
Should be good for prototyping tube circuits etc.

Also a bunch of GPIB cables for $10-15 each and some BNC attenuators of various values for about the same price.

Looks like the coronavirus thing has people offloading gear, with not as many people bidding, which is good for my acquisition of gear, bad for my bank account.... 

[mnementh]

What do you mean by "partially analogue, partially digital"? That will give some info that might allow imagination to save the day.

Well I need to measure two current ramps using voltage sampling on a series resistor (relative to ground) because I can't afford two current probes. And a voltage ramp. And an inbound trigger pulse. Need to measure rise time of the current ramps, leading time from the trigger pulse and the lag to the voltage ramp.

Current sampling, I'm looking to measure saturation of inductors.

I'm sure you can guess where this is going 

Could you:

• use scope's capture+measure functions to determine the risetime
• logic analyser or counter/timer to measure the intervals between scope's trigger out and trigger pulse

Interesting. Will see if I can wangle that. The bugger is I need to do this for 20-30 things and work out the distribution.

Mmmmhmmm...  Second scope with deep memory (like the 54645A currently winging its way toward me at a snail's pace) triggering off the first...?

mnem
 

[psykok]

Solartron 7075 (NAWTS)

https://www.ebay.com/itm/133475861755

this one will for sure go for ridiculous money

[bd139]

Oh fucking great. The folks I work for have just decided no more support for Mac users. Chopping off at VPN when macos 11 comes out.. Gonna have to argue a chunk of cash out of them for that or accept some turd corp desktop. 

[psykok]

I just can't help myself. 
Just won a HP 6035A PSU for roughly $100. 0-425V at 0-5A, 800W...  (Auction photo again).
Should be good for prototyping tube circuits etc.

Also a bunch of GPIB cables for $10-15 each and some BNC attenuators of various values for about the same price.

Looks like the coronavirus thing has people offloading gear, with not as many people bidding, which is good for my acquisition of gear, bad for my bank account.... 

I almost  bought  one  at the beginning  of the corona crisis but I didn’t  because of my lake of space in my rack

[mnementh]

Ebay have now giving them a ultimatum, send me a prepaid label within 5 days or they will find in my favour, refund me and I get to keep this 2L one, so lets see what happens now. 

OK, in the sweepstake I take "Specmaster gets a free 2L one". I presume that if I win I get the classic Stan Lee prize?

Sorry but you have lost the sweepstake, the seller has sent me the postage costs direct to my PayPal account, so I won't be getting a free one (not that I wanted it) nor will I be getting the correct item, they are refunding my money.

So now I'm back with my little plastic one, like you until I can find another suitable unit at a realistic price.

Once eBay get notification that it has been delivered they are going to refund me in full. 

Great... so you not only get all the assache; but now you can't even post negative feedback to warn others what a douche-puppet this seller is. Jeebus. We really need to start a "D-Bag Vendor List"...   

mnem
 grr.

[TERRA Operative]

I almost  bought  one  at the beginning  of the corona crisis but I didn’t  because of my lake of space in my rack

I haven't let that stop me. I'll just have to get another rack.

[mnementh]

Quick followup:

I think there's a problem only with the first attachment slot. If you skip the first one and use the other one it appear to be working fine.

This workaround is still working for me. Last night I posted a mini how-to with 10 pics; deliberately did not wait for all the pics and just hit [POST]. eevBlog gagged on it for a few seconds, then popped up a THERE HAS BEEN A NEW POST warning. But after I clicked [POST] again, all the pics came up without issue; they were even in the right order for a change.

Thanks K !!!

mnem
 

[Robert763]

Solartron 7075 (NAWTS)

https://www.ebay.com/itm/133475861755

this one will for sure go for ridiculous money

If it does I may have drag my two out of storage and put them on. Not used them since I got my 7071.

[tggzzz]

Solartron 7075 (NAWTS)

https://www.ebay.com/itm/133475861755

this one will for sure go for ridiculous money

Clearly I sold my spare 7075 too cheaply

[psykok]

I almost  bought  one  at the beginning  of the corona crisis but I didn’t  because of my lake of space in my rack

I haven't let that stop me. I'll just have to get another rack.

Couple of years back I had a full high rack in my workshop and I decided to cut it to almost in the middle to extend my bench space.
It was a really good decision but today I have a tower of instrument sitting  on top of it making it almost as tall it was before 

[bd139]

Great job by TTi as usual. Managed to obtain a copy of the TG300 series full service manual by asking. Will make sure it's pushed to the relevant places 

[tonyalbus]

Great job by TTi as usual. Managed to obtain a copy of the TG300 series full service manual by asking. Will make sure it's pushed to the relevant places 

Yes TTi is great with providing servicemanuals...

[Cerebus]

Speaking of Colchesters, I saw an imperial Colchester "Student" mark II the other day, for a good price, in good condition (as far as one can judge from photographs), DRO, coolant pump. The price was "jump for it" good. However, if I bought it I wouldn't have a living room anymore - as that's the only space I've got left that's big enough to take it. I also shortly afterward would probably find myself missing my two favourite 'little ball bearings' after the missus found the sofa replaced by over a ton of iron, grease and swarf.

I need a shed, a big shed with a concrete floor and 3 phase...

That sort of deal is what they make stock & lock storage units for. At least until you get the shed built...

Being in London, where nowadays the principal creator of 'wealth' is the property market makes this tricky. There used to be a light industrial area near me called Carpenters Road (including the old Clarnico factory where they originally made my favourite fondant mints) where I could probably have found a corner at a not unreasonable rent, some bastards forceably evicted all the residents, demolished it all, and built the Olympic park over it. Literally behind my house was a double row of garages that one could rent. They have been demolished and some truly crappy new houses are currently being squeezed onto the long narrow plot. The space a five minute walk away where, up until five years ago, there was a 'backstreet engineers' who'd knock out parts for a reasonable price has gone, yup you guessed it, replaced by a tiny new build house. The nearest to me I might, if I was lucky, find a bit of light industrial space to use is Rainham Marshes and that would invoke a drive into ... (shudders) ... Essex (along one of the busiest and most congested roads in the country I might add - think of it like Manhattanites think of their bridges and you wouldn't be far off).

I'm not going to get any place to dump all the lovely iron that I could find at reasonable prices unless I do a BD139 and head for parts of the country where you don't have to be a millionaire to afford a wee bit of space.

[mnementh]

I grok you. I miss the grandparents' old homestead for much this reason; I could engage in as much noisy, hammery, grindy, weldy tinkery as the weather would allow and not have to worry about any of that shit.

Ahhh.... the lazy, hazy days of the summer of our lives... 

mnem

[Cerebus]

Ebay have now giving them a ultimatum, send me a prepaid label within 5 days or they will find in my favour, refund me and I get to keep this 2L one, so lets see what happens now. 

OK, in the sweepstake I take "Specmaster gets a free 2L one". I presume that if I win I get the classic Stan Lee prize?

Sorry but you have lost the sweepstake, the seller has sent me the postage costs direct to my PayPal account, so I won't be getting a free one (not that I wanted it) nor will I be getting the correct item, they are refunding my money.

So now I'm back with my little plastic one, like you until I can find another suitable unit at a realistic price.

Once eBay get notification that it has been delivered they are going to refund me in full. 

Great... so you not only get all the assache; but now you can't even post negative feedback to warn others what a douche-puppet this seller is. Jeebus. We really need to start a "D-Bag Vendor List"...   

mnem
 grr.

Not so sure that's the case. I had eBay step in and give me a full refund on a "didn't arrive, vendor doesn't reply to messages" case the other day and I was able to leave negative feedback after the case was closed.

[AVGresponding]

Solartron 7075 (NAWTS)

https://www.ebay.com/itm/133475861755

this one will for sure go for ridiculous money

Clearly I sold my spare 7075 too cheaply

The speed with which it sold was a good clue...

I note there's no lead with the stupid Fischer connector included, should do what you did and retro a 6-pin mini-XLR.

          ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I imagine some of you watch Big Clive's channel, I bought one of those UFOs he was playing beard-roulette with, it's surprisingly good.


Also arrived, a Black Star 3225 which I forgot I bought, £15 shipped or so, basically the battery version of the 3210 I already had, though this one is older and has unshrouded banana sockets. It also has an even faster continuity test, you could seriously use it to send high speed Morse!
Sold as parts/not working, but these are so simple I expected an easy fix.
The low current range fuse holder is completely borked, will need to use a new one, just a panel mount M205 so no dramas.
No battery door, not sure whether to print one (using my hypothetical future 3dp) or convert it to use 18650s.
Fix was even easier than I anticipated; turned out to be the main power fuse on the board. This isn't visible without removing the shielding, which hadn't been done as evidenced by the intact tamper evident/pot sealing paint.
I'll have to take a good look at the circuit diagram to figure out how it happened. In any case, I didn't have an M205 glass 200mA fuse, so for now it's got a 250mA one in, and working fine.


Incidentally there's a 3210MP on fleabay atm, worth chucking a lowball at:
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Rare-Vintage-Black-Star-3210MP-multimeter/203059645777

[mnementh]

Up on the bench this mornin'...

      

Yesterday's thrifting yielded this find; an original Chuck Hayes-era Mach 1 analog joystick. This thing is pristine; action is smooth as silk, the buttons are firm and the centering is still smooth & precise after 30-something years. Cleanup took literally 5 minutes with alcohol on a rag followed by a wipedown with Windex; it was obviously taken care of all its life. The rubber feet are even still grippy and firm with no glazing or marshmallowing! The only flaw I could find is a couple faint contact-yellowing spots on the bottom.

A quick eBay search shows even this base model going for USD$30-40 with shipping... smeg!

For 4 Canadian pesos it was a no-brainer; now I just need to hunt up a cheap USB game controller for it or maybe mod an old XBOX360 controller to use it with.

mnem
Giggity!

[Kosmic]

Question:
If you have to choose between a

- Siglent SDG1025 (310 Euro)
- GW Instek AFG-2225 (300 Euro)

which one would you choose and why?
Both are in nearly new condition.

If I was forced towards this choice...
I would consider turning away from electronics.

 

[mnementh]

Ebay have now giving them a ultimatum, send me a prepaid label within 5 days or they will find in my favour, refund me and I get to keep this 2L one, so lets see what happens now. 

OK, in the sweepstake I take "Specmaster gets a free 2L one". I presume that if I win I get the classic Stan Lee prize?

Sorry but you have lost the sweepstake, the seller has sent me the postage costs direct to my PayPal account, so I won't be getting a free one (not that I wanted it) nor will I be getting the correct item, they are refunding my money.

So now I'm back with my little plastic one, like you until I can find another suitable unit at a realistic price.

Once eBay get notification that it has been delivered they are going to refund me in full. 

Great... so you not only get all the assache; but now you can't even post negative feedback to warn others what a douche-puppet this seller is. Jeebus. We really need to start a "D-Bag Vendor List"...   

mnem
 grr.

Not so sure that's the case. I had eBay step in and give me a full refund on a "didn't arrive, vendor doesn't reply to messages" case the other day and I was able to leave negative feedback after the case was closed.

Mhmmm... not sure now that you mention it. I've had a couple cases where I was unable to leave feedback after an atrocious amount of BS back & forth with a vendor; not sure if that was because they refunded in full including shipping, or what. Also might have been because they resolved it themselves without me opening a dispute; I can't remember if that was the case now, TBH.

I've gotten a lot less patient lately; if I don't have a satisfactory resolution within a couple iterations, I open a dispute no matter what. eBay has used up all my charity.

mnem

[mnementh]

Buy a broken 4 channel DSO. That’s a larger challenge these days 

Okay. But just 'cuz you sed to. 

mnem
Fine, fine, fine... I'll get it's brother too so I can make 4 channels.

Worst case you can strip it for bits and make a lot more than that 

Yeah, if they ever ship the fucking thing. 

*Refresh*
.
.
.
.
.
.
*Refresh*
.
.
.
.
.
.
*Refresh*
.
.
.
.
.
.
*Refresh*
.
.
.
.
.
.
What are they doing; growing the trees to make the cardboard for the box...? 
.
.
.
.
.
.
*Refresh*
.
.
.
.
.
.
*Refresh*
.
.
.
.
.
.
*Refresh..... Harrumph!*

mnem
*Toddles off to do something, even if it's wrong...*

[bd139]

Same with my TG300 

Just scrounged a PC bits pile on expenses so I’m doing another Ryzen build this week. Only a straight 3600 / 16Gb jobby but better than a noisy ass HP Z series.

Fuck whoever came up with no Mac policy